Does anyone know how to run Wasps pff without having to trap and kill them? I have a bunch of (VERY) large Wasps that look like Paper Wasps in front of my house. Since they are beneficial I absolutely hate the thought of having to kill them if another method can be found to make them go away. Any help will be appriceated by myself and the Wasps.

Was told by the organic farmer down the road from us about this one ….we use it and it really works! Place straight white vinegar into a spray bottle and spray around house. We have a railing that runs the length of our patio and spray that well along with the eaves of the house. You will need to redo every week or after each rainfall, but this is super cheap. Keep off your plants, the vinegar will burn them.

I live in Michigan and use moth balls in my shed. I place them in the shed twice a year, around April and about half way into August. It has worked for me for 10 years now. I make sure that the moth balls are in all the corners, near the doors plus in the loft.
Most Dollar Store carry Moth Balls.
I hope this helps protect you from stings.

We tried the Waspinators this year and it DID work, but only for the spring. When it started getting hot here in SC, it hasn’t worked at all. I don’t get it. I have them hanging out all along my vinyl siding white porch. They come like 4 at a time and it doesn’t even look like they are building a next…just having a meeting? They are awful! So, you are really saying that vinegar will work?

i CAN NOT REMEMBER, BUT I READ SOMEWHERE TO HANG A GALLON ZIPLOCK BAG FILLED HALFWY WITH WATER BY THE CORNER TO RESEMBLE A HORNETS NEST AND THAT SCARES THEM AWAY. IF U TRY THIS AND IT WORKS PLEASE POST.

That is truly awesome and innovative. Thank for the tip! We usually have a lot of yellow jackets hanging around the swimming pool in the summertime and I don’t want the kids to get stung. Maybe something like this will help.

I continue to get wasps in my home – had this problem last summer – already had to kill 3 in the past 2 weeks. Called exterminator last year and they sprayed but could not find a wasp nest in the attic or around the house. Any suggestions or tips? They are clearly coming in the house somewhere – my guess is the attic since I’m not able to see a visible nest outside or around the house and I continually check also.

Mendie,
I’m not even joking with this… But my husband had a horrible wasp problem growing up as a child. They had wasps every where and couldn’t find where they were. They found the IN THE GROUND. The exterminator said it was the nest that was about the size of a small car. *cue horror movie music* So, check the ground to see if wasps are flying out of it.

We had them in the wall. Those little buggers built their nest by chewing the drywall and made a nest that was an inch thick but wide. We finally discovered them when they put a pencil size hole in the wall and then started flying in the house. It was located behind the t.v. in the alcove. The t.v made it difficult to hear them buzzing around. We had to call an exterminator. Nasty business!

We have what they call here “ground hornets”. Look for a dirt hole with a quarter/half dollar size hole in it. The one we found was at the base of a tree somewhat close to where we a snow fountain cherry (which is always FILLED with bees when it blooms). Not sure if the flowers and trees around have anything to do with it but was also at the corner of our house also close to our swimming pool. I also heard that they like to be near a water source.

My husband poured a little gas into the hole at night and lit it (don’t use very much gas because it’s the fumes of the gas that actually burn!). (Also, I don’t recommend the gas method if you haven’t ever done anything like that before and especially if it is anywhere near a structure or other people/pets). I think I’ve even heard of people putting seven dust in the whole. Whatever you do, do it at night when the wasps are dormant. I am just telling you what we did. Try at your own risk. I take no responsibility for any harm to anyone/thing. Hope this helps.

We also had them nest in wierd places. As a child, we had them go under the siding in the corner of the house. My father tried to seal off the entrance, thinking that would take care of them, but they came through the walls/outlets into the house! NOT a great experience! We also had them nest in rock walls and in landscape timbers that had rotted out inside.

growing up we had an outside dog who had a large insulated dog house in the back yard. One day he stopped using it no matter how cold or rainy it got, & we coaxed him into being an “indoor” dog. Because the doghouse was so big (my dad built it out of old wooden doors) it took up a lot of room so we tore it down. when we did we found a HUGE wasp nest under it about 3 feet in diameter! Poor doggy was driven out of his own home by those suckers!

if you are going to use the gas (petrol) method – Do not light it, there is no need. The fumes do all the killing all by themselves in just a few seconds. Just take care not to create a spark while handling the liquid and you will be fine. Also, no smoking in the immediate area for a couple of days.

I have found a wasps nest in the ground, in the tree in my front yard and also in the bushes in my front flower bed. They are VERY hard to find in the summer but in the winter when the leaves fall off the tree and bushes, I finally found their nests and destroyed them. They keep coming back and trying to nest but I’m going to try this idea. They are one of my biggest fears.

I had a freind who nearly died when she was using a riding mower and drove over a nest in the ground..They attacked in force..There dangerous to people like me who are allergic and to pets and small children..They attack in force and dont stop till there frenzy is over

I found bees in the ground in my garden. When it was cooler in the evening, I put a tarp over the area they were flying into, and sealed up all the edges with anything I could find. Don’t leave any area unsealed or they will get out. I used stones and bags of mulch. They can’t get out and get overheated and die. Worked well. I also read some people suck them up with a shop
vac and leave the shop vac in the sun where they die.

Have a heating and air person check out your duct work to make sure they aren’t coming in through there. Especially if your house has a crawl space rather than a slab. Our cabin had wasps for years until we finally figured out that was the problem!

we had a problem with wasps getting in the house a few years ago. they were coming in thru the vent for the stove. my husband put a smaller mesh screen on the outside of the house haven’t had a problem since. good luck

We have a severe issue with wasps nesting on our porches. We have found that if you fill a glass with water and Dawn dish liquid, throw it directly on the nest, it will cause them to fall off the nest. This allows you to knock the nest down and they will nest elsewhere.

We cinch up the top of a brown paper bag (larger than a lunch bag size, but smaller than a grocery bag), with a piece of string and hang it off our deck. We use a “free” bag from a take-out order. It resembles a nest shape and does an excellent job keeping the wasps away! We live in a wooded area and have even observed the wasps veer away from the deck when flying in the area!!!

I’m looking for a way to keep bees & wasps away from our pool. They think I have the pool for their personal use & I would hate for our grandson to get stung. A bee got me once or twice, but I don’t want them to get too well established.

You realise wasps are great at killing and eating pesky caterpillars that will destroy a garden. Wasps also help pollinate flowers and keep a garden beautiful. Weigh out whether you want a garden or a “pest” hanging out at a one day party. Just remember those wasps will not be replaced. Nor the green lacewings that eat aphids. It also looks like you caught hover flies those flies pollinate as adults and are predators as larvae. My point know what you’re trying to kill and know its roll in the garden because killing the benificals is a bad idea.

Excellent point! We should especially be protective of honey bees which are essential to our food supply. They are already suffering die-off (just discovered to be pesticide-related, duh!). If we kill enough of them we’ll all starve to death.

All the ‘wasps’ in the trap there are really yellow jackets/hornets. SUPER aggressive and mean. They kill honey bees, attack people and pets, and are generally a pain in the rear.
I’ve never been chased or stung by a wasp~ HORNETS on the other hand… evil.

I agree! I originally bought one of these traps from a store because my yard was being being invaded by yellow jackets. It came with a “solution” that you mixed with water, which was really just vinegar and an extra vial of something sweet. With the original solution, I caught 200 yellow jackets in less than 2 weeks, and once it all evaporated, I refilled it with vinegar and sugar water. By the time that one evaporated I had caught 250 more yellow jackets. true story. In total there was only about 5 actual wasps and only one honey bee. Also included were a few moths and a few house flies. So yes. Definitely an AWESOME YELLOW JACKET trap. Btw- the trap I purchased was very similar to this design. No doubt this would be similarly effective.

Wasps are extremely aggressive and if you get to near htere nests they will go after you..even in the dark ( speaking from experience) and one will “mark” you so all the rest can find you…and they keep stinging unlike bees that only sting once. Be very careful when trying to take them on. The best way is calling in an exterminator. They are a horrible pests and keep the bees away which are more beneficial. And yes they are meat eaters. Watch them sometime if you have meat out. I plan on trying this method along with several others mentioned. The last 2 years have been horrid with them. :(

I realize wasps help out in the garden. But they also dive bomb my head while out there planting, weeding, etc. The are all over the deck, hanging around the eaves, building their homes on the inside of the shed and on the railing of the deck. I found one in my grill last year! We have sooo many of them, I wish there was a recipe to eat them! Some are so big and aggressive, I worry about them carrying off small children or my dog. I’m torn. I’m wondering if I spray my house and surrounding wood with vinegar, if they would just go away?

Has anyone tried this trap? Are you seeing honeybees in the trap? We feed our bees a mixture of sugar and apple cider vinegar (for disease control) so I’m not understanding why bees wouldn’t be attracted to this trap. Maybe it should be specified to use white vinegar? Is that the difference?

If they want to be in my garden that’s fine but when you come where the children are then I don’t care how useful you are your gonna die. that simple.We cant sit on the porch, the kids cant play on their yard toys ,you cant get in the pool with out getting stung .No your not that useful if your causing more problems then helping .and I dont know if you’ve been stung by a wasp or not but let me tell you its a whole lot worse than a bee sting!!! plus they are very aggressive and that’s dangerous to a small child. so keep them in your yard I don’t want them I hate them!!

A few wasps here and there are not too much of a problem and they can be beneficial if there are no other predators that eliminate the pests. The problem is that large colonies of wasps prey on the other preditors in order to reserve the food source for themselves. A cruel world out there but the wasp strategy is very smart indeed.

Wasps themselves have few predators and this can result in huge colonies with wasps numbering in the millions; They are dangerous and they need to be eradicated.

If you have a wasp problem, the chances are that there is a huge nest somewhere near where you live. If you find it on your property there is an easy cure but you must take care.

Find the opening but do not approach it until after dark. Pour about 1 litre of gas (petrol) into the opening and walk quietly away. A few may escape but the balance will die from the fumes.

Does anyone have ideas on controling and killing carpenter bees. Our barn is getting infested with them. We have tried putting silicone in holes, but they eat their way out. They will also chew through paint, so that doesn.t work either. Help!

We have literally thousands of wasps at my mom’s house. I won’t even let my kids go out there anymore because they chase us down in swarms. They are in every nook and cranny and every bush and fence on the ranch. I am going to try every single “ridding” effort suggested here. We go through CASES of wasp spray EVERY WEEK, and there’s hardly a dent in the masses! One or two wouldn’t be a big deal, but this is ridiculous! Any more suggestions? I will try them all!

Truth is, most wasps are NOT aggressive as some have stated, but the few species that are give them all a bad name. I stand in amongst bees & wasps all the time shooting pictures of insects (literally inches away) and I’ve never been stung or even harassed by a bee or a wasp. Most wasps are indeed beneficial to your garden, your ecosystem, etc. So, if you don’t have to kill them, why would you? Just seems mean. There are lots of alternatives that have been mentioned on this board – the plastic bags with water & a penny work very well as do the fake lantern type “nests.” Hadn’t heard of the blue ceiling paint, but that would be a good one to try also. How about we leave the killing for the last resort?

I was stung as a kid once or twice – it happens. But my experience as both a biologist and photographer is that these insects are really not interested in us the vast majority of the time and combined with the good they do for our food supply just for one, the idea of just killing them because they exist seems counter intuitive to the gardener’s philosophy…

Doc, Biological control – the ultimate solution? Were it not for the interference of man we, and a fair old chunk of the world, would not have these biological problems in the first place.

Biological control is the introduction of these insects into lands where no such creature hitherto existed. Then when they become rampant, another must introduced to control them. Both prey and predator will die out, in theory. However, nature doesn’t work like that.

Ultimately, we ordinary folk must take action to protect ourselves and our children in whatever way seems most appropriate. If that means killing them en-mass, so be it.

Wow, thanks everyone. These are some pretty interesting ideas that i plan on trying out…right now! As for those fake wasp nests, I tried those last summer and although they MAY have worked at very first, it seemed that the wasps “caught on ” rather quickly and they were no longer detered by them. I think I even heard a couple of them waspers laughing at me one day. Said something about “foolish humans.”… ; ) Well good luck everyone. Here’s hoping my son isn’t stung everytime he goes outside, like last year. HAPPY TRAPPING!!

I have read that if you take a 5 gallon bucket and fill it half way with sand then at night when they are most inactive turn the bucket of sand upside down over their nest hole. They will come up through the sand to get out but can’t get back down through it. Leave the bucket there for several days or a couple of weeks. Make sure you are well covered before taking it off just in case there are some still alive. If you are so worried about them being killed then just put a bucket of sand over the hole and leave it there. They will have to find another nesting place when they come to the surface.

What about Carpenter Bees? I have them come every year around on the south/east side of my house above my windows.They drill holes in the wood trim and i’v been told that the Queen bee is inside.My windows are very high (two stories up approx 15 to20′)Is there anything that will keep them away?They fly around to my deck when you go outthere.

Definitely willing to give this a try although we don’t see many wasps. I will share this recipe with my nieces who have swimming pools and get lots of wasps. They eat outside a lot and they tend to be really annoying. The wasps, not the nieces. :)

yes. I use hamburger .no beneficial insects like this .You can also use a mason jar. Screw on the lid make a slit wide enough for wasps to enter fill with 2in. water add small amount of raw burger and let nature do the rest. smelly but reusable .

[…] weak colonies. Early August is a good time to put out some wasp traps to control the population. Click Here for a cheap, easy DIY construction of a wasp trap. Don’t use honey in your wasp trap or, it will […]

Several Ideas…..One there is always a wasp nest underground. I found one the size of a beach ball under my rose bush three years ago. they make a tunnel then a big blob of a nest elsewhere. You have to find it. however, use a bag of water with a penny in it and hang it around your garden…it will rid of them including flies. Also, paint your garage, shed, carport ceiling with blue paint, it keeps them away. Pools, always spray around the pools several times a week with Lemon and Vinegar it will keep the wasps away and from building nests. Check around your house, shingles and hidden areas and spray those areas too. If possible as winter approaches, Start Chalking holes closed. Paint over it. Time to rid now, and next spring keep at it. The more you stay on top of it the better!! Good luck!

that advise of throwing a cup of water mixed with down dish soap to the wasp hive is the most dangerous trap for people because wasps attack anyone who tries to approach their nest and the soapy water will make all of the wasps go after you and sting you a lot of times and you can not even try to run because of the slippery soapy wet floor and the hive is full of wasps that will keep storming out of it and after the person .. wasps don’t die that easy and thayr sting hurts for weeks and they leave stuff inside your skin when you whack them off of your skin and i am not talking about bees , i was recently stung by one very big wasp and the pain is horrible

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